“Kain, Kain?”
Kainster felt someone gently shaking him.
Soft sunlight filtered through the gaps in the leaves, casting patches of swaying light onto the grass.
A gentle breeze blew past, carrying the faint scent of flowers from the courtyard.
He could hear the sound of a distant fountain's flowing water in his ears. Everything was so peaceful it felt unreal.
“Zona, let me sleep just a little longer.”
Kainster felt the shaking from the person beside him suddenly grow a bit firmer.
“Uh-huh? And which family's lady might this Zona be~”
No, that didn't sound like Zona's voice. Zona would never sound this gentle.
Hearing this gentle voice, Kainster abruptly opened his eyes.
What met his eyes was soft, golden hair shimmering under the sun.
The sunlight slid down her silky strands of hair.
Her familiar smile was just as warm as he remembered, and her eyes were filled with indulgence for him.
Seeing this, Kainster froze in place.
His lips parted slightly, but he couldn't form a complete sentence for the longest time.
“M-Mother?”
Kainster's eyes were filled with disbelief. His mother should have passed away long ago...
“Kain, tell me~ Which family does this Zona belong to?”
Looking at his mother's smiling face, Kainster sat up from the grass.
“Zona isn't some noble lady, Mother. She's actually very fierce.”
If this is a dream, I hope it lasts just a little longer.
Looking at the courtyard from his memories, Kainster took his mother's hand.
Her familiar warmth spread through his palm.
He instinctively gripped it tighter, as if afraid that if he let go even a little, all of this would vanish once more.
“So much has happened recently. Let me tell you all about it, bit by bit.”
Seeing her child holding her hand so eagerly, the woman smiled gently.
“Kain, look at how impatient you are. We have plenty of time.”
“We don't have much time at all, but I have so many things I want to ask you.”
“Alright, alright. Mother will listen to you slowly.”
In reality—
“Thank you, Miss Succubus.”
Zona looked at Aliviel, who was currently casting dream magic, with gratitude in her eyes.
“Oh, don't mention it. You're willing to provide me with an extra source of energy, so I can't thank you enough.”
“But really, don't you want to try my dream magic too?”
“Dreams are exceptionally sweet, you know~”
Aliviel lightly rested her chin in her hand.
Her tail swayed back and forth behind her, indicating she was in quite a good mood.
“No, thank you. I saw from the recording stone that you and that demon gentleman went through a major magic accident.”
Seeing the dream dust drifting closer to her, Zona immediately took a few steps back.
She even instinctively covered her nose, terrified that the dream dust would float onto her face in the next second.
“Hehehe, it seems you and Phelan have a pretty good relationship. You've only been here a few days, yet he was willing to show you those records.”
Seeing Zona's fearful expression, Aliviel put away the dream dust in her hand.
“I'm afraid that's private.”
“Mhm~”
“Well, this prince of yours will sleep until tomorrow at the very least. Go find your Phelan, little elf.”
Aliviel waved her hand at Zona.
“I should also go check on the other prince.”
With that, Aliviel leaped straight out of the nearby window.
Her purple figure bounded lightly, vanishing into the night outside.
“...”
“Is using the door actually considered abnormal behavior for the residents of the Demon King's Castle?”
Even though she had been at the Demon King's Castle for a few days now, this habit of not using doors had to be incredibly bizarre no matter where one went, right?!
In the capital—
“It's raining outside right now. Are you truly planning to set off at this moment?”
Ichikawa was currently standing in the hall of the Holy See. His silver-white armor was polished to a spotless gleam, and the sword at his waist swayed gently with his steps.
“Yes, Bishop Karl.”
Looking at the rain outside, Karl cast a rain-shielding barrier over Ichikawa.
Ripples of pale gold magic spread outward.
Eventually, they coalesced into an almost transparent film of light, wrapping around Ichikawa's body.
“In that case, please be careful on your journey.”
Karl lightly patted Ichikawa's shoulder and opened the gates of the Holy See for him. For the first time, this Hero summoned from another world stepped out of the Holy See's doors.
The rain poured down relentlessly.
Yet, the moment the droplets drew near his body, they were gently deflected by the film of light.
Ichikawa took a deep breath of the air, which carried the scent of damp soil.
This was the first time since arriving in this world that he was truly stepping foot into it.
Only when Ichikawa's figure completely vanished into the curtain of rain did the smile fade from Karl's face.
His face, which had always worn a warm, amiable smile, finally showed a trace of exhaustion.
He gently massaged his temples and exhaled a long sigh.
“So, you didn't even bother to see him a second time before he left.”
“What does it matter?”
“He'll find his way back here on his own eventually.”
Hearing this, Karl looked back to see Furni stepping out from behind the Goddess statue.
She stretched lazily and naturally while brushing the dust off her clothes.
Did this dragon fall asleep back there?
Karl watched her movements with deep suspicion in his eyes.
“Instead of worrying about him, you'd better start thinking about yourself.”
“That First Prince is about to arrive. You must have felt it recently too, right?”
Furni ignored Karl's scrutinizing gaze.
Thinking about how this old man had already begun to face underhanded troubles from those nobles both openly and in the shadows, Furni shook her head.
“Heh, what do those things amount to?”
“The Holy See might lose one Karl, but there will be countless other Karls. Besides, I'm only stepping down from this position.”
“How do you know I'll be utterly ruined just because I lose my title?”
Karl spoke with complete confidence in the future, looking nothing like a bishop who was about to be stripped of his office.
“Alright, Furni, come help me pack up. Once this Emperor takes the throne, I'd better be sensible and beat it.”
Having said that, Karl grabbed Furni's sleeve and began dragging her toward the office where he had spent nearly twenty years.
“No way! Who wants to help an old man pack? I am the great guardian dragon, not your cleaning maid!”
Furni pulled hard on her clothes in the opposite direction of Karl's tug.
However, with Furni holding back all of her draconic strength, how could she compete with this bishop, who, despite his age, possessed a remarkably robust build?
She was left with no choice but to be dragged toward the office.
The floor even bore faint scuff marks from the force of Karl's dragging.
“Save your breath. What could possibly be better at destroying useless scrap paper than your dragon flame?”
“...Are you using the great guardian dragon's dragon flame as a paper shredder?!”
Soon, the indignant protests of a certain dragon echoed down the corridors of the Holy See.
Rate on N.U.
